Oh dear me! How dare I not update every day, you poor poor readership. This isn't acceptable, so because of this... well, here's another post to make up for the non-posting for the last two days. (Heck, if I get enough to write about, I might make another post today, just to make up for lost time.)
Seeing as I write for the Steampunks, the Cosplayers, the Goths, the Lolitas, and the Gamers (heck, there will probably be random bits of other stuff here. Who knows.) I'm going to safely assume a lot of people in these subcultures go to Conventions. Be they Anime, Gamer, or Comic Book (et cetera and so forth), Conventions are fun events where you can get together with life-minded people and essentially have a blast. If you don't know what a Convention is, ask your local Cosplayer, you won't be sorry~
This post, however, is assuming you already know what a Convention (sometimes referred to as Con here) is. Because I'm going to do a fun debate! Smaller Cons verses Larger Cons. Now, everyone has their preferences, but I'm just going to outline the various pros and cons for you.
Smaller conventions have the merit of closeness, a tight-knit seeming group, where people are often a lot friendlier with people and more open to conversation. These are great Conventions for people who don't like tight, cramped spaces as much (bear in mind, there will still be tight, cramped spaces, just not near as much as a larger con.) These are good cons for people who want to make friends easily or are going to their first convention and aren't certain as to whether they can handle the hustle and bustle of a con.
However, small conventions are often lacking in funding, and it can really show. The dealer's room won't be near as large or well-stocked, the guests might not be as well known, there won't be near as many panels, and overall, at a smaller convention, you have to make your own entertainment. Likewise, you're less likely to find Cosplayers in your series, especially if it's not a super popular series. (You're still going to see three or four Narutos. it's expected.)
So let's recap:
Small Pros:
Close-knit among Cosplayers
Good for making friends
More room/space
Good for unsure first-time goers.
Small Cons (haha. There's a pun.) :
Not near as much entertainment
Lacking in funding
Smaller dealer's room.
Less likely to find similar-Cosplayers.
Larger conventions are perfect for people who love to have a lot of action. They want to attend a lot of panels, go to the concerts, all those fun things. You're bound to meet a lot more people, and it's never hard to find people who Cosplay in your series (heck, you're probably going to find two or three people Cosplaying what you're Cosplaying. It happens.) The dealer's room is expansive, and you're bound to find a lot of fun things to buy. There's something for everyone at larger cons.
On the wise, larger cons can also seem highly impersonal. There's just too many people to be personal and super-nice to everyone. Likewise, the hallways tend to be highly crowded, and getting around is a chore. The venues also tend to be larger, which means getting from one half of the Convention to the other can take a good solid hour. (I only wish I was joking.) Some people have no troubles making friends at larger conventions, but I've found it's just hard to find a place to sit and chat, there's simply no room!
Recap time~
Larger Pros:
More Cosplayers in your series
More panels/guests
Larger dealer's room
Meet more people.
Larger Cons (I'm not even gonna say it.) :
Impersonal
Crowded (and I mean really crowded)
Hard to get around
Nowhere to sit and talk.
~~~
Personally, I've always preferred smaller conventions. (Less than five hundred people. Such conventions are hard to come by, unfortunately.) My boyfriend, contrary, prefers larger conventions (upwards of ten thousand people. There's no such thing as 'too large' for him.) So I've gotten a nice share of both of them. (SabotenCon 08, KikiCon 08, AniZona 09, and Phoenix Cactus ComiCon 10) Well look at that, split down the middle. Here's some bonus info, a small description of these Cons.
Keep in mind, I usually don't attend panels unless it's completely something I NEED to go to. (Say, a panel talking about the merits of Soul Calibur or something.) So these are completely based on the social scene.
Saboten 08: How can I complain? This was my first Convention, and I was a total newbie. It was a great con, especially since it was in its first year (you'd never guess. It was like they were doing it for years.) There was great paneling (so I heard), a lot of Cosplayers, and overall a great venue. This was a larger Con I genuinely enjoyed. (Then again, it was my first.)
Kiki 08: I am never going to complain about a free convention. Kiki was a one day event in November, free to get in, and overall an event to socialize. Although there were contests like the Iron Cosplay and whatnot, a lot of people were there for the socialization. The staff were friendly, the venue was gorgeous (ASU North Campus, this was held by the ASU Otaku Club, and I wish they'd hold another one sometime soon. I adore free one-day Cons like this.) I happened to spend most of the time talking to a handsome young lad who I had detested back in the Saboten days (he tried to get my satin cloak wet, come on!) We had both matured quite a bit (and I was wearing a more water-friendly cloak.) So I spent a good deal of time talking to my future-boyfriend.
Anizona 09: Just needs to be said. I loved this con so much, and I'm really sad to see it go. Anizona had a huge amount of controversy among the Arizona congoers and whatnot, and I understand that. They had cancelled the year before, there were financial crises, and things just weren't as good as they could be. However, the people that were at the con were amazing. I met more people than I could count, and everyone was very nice to the girl in the giant dress hanging around with the Naruto/Luffie hybrid. The people who put on Anizona said they'd be doing more small-time events, but I haven't heard of any. Fooey. (Maybe I'm just not looking.)
PCC 10: Now this is a large con (All of you people who attend Otakon and AX regularly can start snickering at my thought of ten-thousand or so being huge.) Thankfully, I spent most of it in a dressing room awaiting the Tokyo Girls performance (more on that in another entry, perhaps~) What time I DID spend in the Con was overwhelming. I'm not going to say I didn't have fun, it was just too much for me, and I got very very sick afterwards. (More about post-Con-sickness in my "Convention Survival" entry for later. Look out for it!) However, I did have fun doing something totally uncharacteristic, going to panels. (Well, just one). Cosplay "Who's Line Is It Anyway?" We were run by a lovely Steampunk gentleman, and poor JJ got to go up and participate. He's enough social butterfly for the two of us, I swear~
~~~
Whether you like them large or small, conventions overall are just plain fun, and I highly recommend people attend them~
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